When Mark Twain wrote “The Gilded age: A Tale of Today” little did he know that his satirical quip will eventually be used by the future historians and writers while referring to post civil war era America, including Julian Fellowes. The Downton Abbey fame’s fascination for the period has been reflected in quite his statements, and the viewers of the show can claim that he understood the assignment. From Bertha’s exploits to Mrs. Astor’s Custodianship, the show is a recipe for juicy drama. But wait a minute, we’re going to corner some of that and talk about the black characters who successfully made their mark on the audience, highlighting the nuances of New York society and America in general. And the credit goes to Sonja Warfield and Erica Armstrong Dunbar who skilfully narrated black history through them. Here we’ll dig deeper and understand the real people behind them and analyze this timespan from their perspectives.
Peggy Scott
Writers of the show were clever enough to craft this character. An aspiring writer and journalist from Brooklyn, she was inspired by many black women who embodied an elite young black woman of the 1880s.
Gertrude Bustill Mossell
One of the most influential women journalists and editors of her time, she was born in one of the elite black families of Philadelphia. Losing her mother in a tender age, she immersed most of her time in reading books. Her widowed father, although busy with his abolitionist activities, did his best to provide a good education to her two daughters. She received her initial education from Institute of Coloured Youth and later graduated from Robert Vaux Grammar school, where her graduation speech “Influence” got the attention of Bishop Henry McNeal Turner, who then published it in The Christian Recorder.
Post graduation, she juggled her work as a teacher along with writing for Philadelphia Echo and Philadelphia Independent. After marrying N.H. Mossell (First African American to earn a medical degree from University of Pennsylvania’s Medical School) in 1883, she followed the convention of her times and gave up her job to look after the family. In 1885, she resumed her interest in newspapers and became an editor of The New York Freeman where she wrote a weekly column called “Our Woman’s Department. Through her writings, she advocated the need of women to be aware and vocal about civil and political rights alongside running households.
Her phenomenal creation, The Work of Afro-American women, contained biographies of several Black women across all fields of study and work. Published in 1894, the book is a collection of eight essays and seventeen poems, worth reading for people who want to understand black history better.
Julia C. Collins
Through the character of Peggy, Lord Fellowes has unearthed one of the most important black personalities and presented it before a wide audience, known to be the first Afro-American women writer. Apart from being the author of the serialized novel – The Curse of Caste; or The Slave Bride and six other essays in The Christian Recorder, very little is known about her.
Yet in the silence between the facts, a deeper story seems to whisper. Historian Mitch Kachun’s discovery of the writings of Collins initiated a debate around who she was and what values she stood for. Unfortunately, she died of Tuberculosis which left her novel unfinished, inciting speculation and mystery around her work.
Ida B. Wells
Born into slavery, she was one of the most outspoken black women of her time who was seldom hesitant to stand against racism and violence. Post Civil War, her parents became active in Reconstruction era politics alongside instilling the need of education in their daughter. She unfortunately lost her parents and her brother to a yellow fever epidemic which she missed while visiting her grandmother. She then had to take up teaching at the age of 14 to take care of her siblings. In 1884, she filed a lawsuit against Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad for being thrown off the train despite having a ticket for the first class. Although she experienced defeat in 1887 at federal court, she didn’t stop her struggle for civil rights. Later when her teaching contract was not renewed, she then chose journalism and started writing for Memphis Free Speech.
When one of her friends and two of his business associates were mob lynched in 1892, she started investigating several cases by visiting the south to understand why Black men were target of such attacks. She later shared her findings in a pamphlet and wrote several columns on the issue. This angered the locals who burned down the press (luckily she was in New York at that time), later forcing her to leave Memphis and settle in Chicago, Illinois. She continued her fight by travelling to speak in several cities of the US and visited the UK twice.
Wells has to her credit the formation of several civil rights organizations : National Association of Colored Women (1896), National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in 1909 (despite being considered a founding member, she later cut ties with it), Alpha Suffrage Club in 1913, what may have been the first Black women’s suffrage group, and played a key role in the passage of Illinois Equal Suffrage Act.
Her story is phenomenal and will keep igniting inspiration in the hearts of Black women for generations to come. Her autobiography, Crusade for Justice, is a good read for people who want to know her more.
T. Thomas Fortune
Season two witnessed the romantic tension between Peggy and Mr. Fortune. But the character is based upon a personality with the same name. One of the most noted man in Afro-American Journalism, he too was born a slave. After doing several odd jobs during the 1870s, he briefly attended Howard University and later left for a career in Journalism by joining people’s advocate. Arriving in the early 1880s in New York, he kept writing for several Black and White Publications. He established The New York Globe newspaper in 1881, which died in 1884 due to his covert endorsement of Grover Cleveland. He again reemerged with The New York Freeman (1884-1887), and later edited The New York Age from 1887. His editorials in the Age were remarkable as he wrote extensively for Northern and Southern Blacks and stood out against segregation and racism. The paper gained substantial influence as a voice for Afro-American individuals.
He also gained prominence as an activist and acted with several civil rights advocacy groups during 1890s. His book in 1884 called Black and White denounced the exploitation of Black Labour in the South. Later he also published The Kind of Education the Afro-American Most Needs in 1898, and a book of poems called Dreams of Life; Miscellaneous Poems in 1905. After selling the Age in 1907, he kept writing for the Negro World from 1923 until his death, leaving a legacy and foundation for Black Journalism.
Booker T. Washington
Remember the Tuskegee episode? While all the drama of the scene kept me occupied, I initially did ignore the character of Mr. Washington who was based on a same person whose work for the black youth of his time was quite controversial.
Mr. Washington believed that economic upliftment of the Black community was much more important than fighting for civil rights and gain political power (something I somehow digested), believing that this will ultimately win the latter. Himself born in poverty; he started working from an early age but strived to get an education. He later graduated in 1875 with high grades from Hampton Normal and Agricultural institute in Virginia alongside working as a janitor.
He later taught children during the day and adults at night in Malden. In 1881, the work for Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute started and General Armstrong recommended Mr. Washington to run the school. He toiled and travelled across the country to promote the school and raise money while running the classes in an old church. Under his guidance, Tuskegee Institute (later Tuskegee University) became a leading school for black education in the US. He closely worked with the curriculum of the school and put emphasis on patience, enterprise and thrift, believing that achieving financial independence and cultural advancement will eventually lead to white people respecting the black community.
His controversial speech known as the “Atlanta Compromise” where he endorsed segregation as a barter for opportunities for economic progress and education, enraged the African American community of the North. W.E.B Du Bois, a professor at Atlanta University at that time and a leading activist, condemned his ideology and criticized him for denouncing equality of African Americans.
His acceptance of Black Servility made him popular among leading figures like President Roosevelt and President Taft who took advice on him on racial matters. He later wrote five books: The Story of My Life and Work (1990), Up From Slavery(1901), The Story of the Negro : The Rise of the Race from Slavery (1909), My Larger Education (1911), The Man Farthest Down (1912). For some his was a hero, for others he was a traitor, and between his hard work and controversial opinions lies a man who is difficult to be understood.
Sarah Garnet
Season two finale of the show witnessed the struggles for survival of Black Schools and their eventual triumph. Through it they highlighted a unique personality of Black American history, Sarah J. S. T. Garnet. A leading face in the Black suffrage movement, she was the first black female Principal of a New York City School. Born to wealthy farmers in Brooklyn in 1831, she was a bright child and became a class monitor.
She had a remarkable career in teaching. At the age of 14 she worked as a teacher’s assistant. After teaching at Williamsburg, Brooklyn, she was made the principal of Grammar School Number Four and Public School Number Eighty, retiring in 1900 when a law was repealed that provisioned separate school for blacks and whites. Alongside that she also ran a seamstress shop.
In the late 1880s, she founded the Equal Suffrage League which provided a platform for black women to advocate for their right to vote. Later when she was made the superintendent of the Suffrage Department for the National Association of Colored Women (NACW), the Equal Suffrage League affiliated with it. These two organizations later . Although she tried working with white suffragist groups, even approached Alva Belmont who tried to help, but their prejudices were an obstacle to a collective effort.
In 1911, she along with her sister Dr. Susan McKinney attended the Universal Races Congress held in London to advocate interracial harmony. There McKinney presented her paper. Unfortunately, she died shortly after her return from England. Her funeral was attended by W. E. B. Du Bois and anti-lynching activist Addie Waites Hunton. A remarkable leader of her race, educator, activist, and suffragist, her struggle is an inspiration to Black American Women who want to pursue activism or have a career in politics.
Conclusion
Black legacy of America has an extraordinary history which is a great treasure for history geeks and people who feel strongly for the Afro-American cause. The show has a lot to offer as they’ve created a narrative that’s enticing to the public and which will create an interest in black stories among a diverse audience. I’ve avoided talking about the storyline as the show binge worthy and spoilers might mess with the fun. So yeah, grab your device and give the show a try, I assure you won’t regret watching it!
